Aladdin’s cave to open sesame for victims

DC Jeff Huxley and DI Martin Earl from Merseyside Police based in St Helens, with items seized, including drills, generators, lawn mowers, bikes and golf clubs, thought to be stolen goods and would like to given them back to the owners

Published:10:29Friday 13 February 2015

Burglary victims from St Helens are being invited to check if an Aladdin’s cave of stolen treasures includes any of their belongings.

Nearly 200 items, ranging from TVs, laptops and sat navs to drills, lawn mowers and fishing equipment, will be on offer at a police event.

The goods have all been discovered by detectives from the area’s acquisitive crime unit who investigate anything from garage break-ins and car thefts to house burglaries and armed robberies.

Officers have painstakingly tried to track down the rightful owners after finding the items during a search warrant before Christmas in St Helens.

Now detectives are inviting people who have had possessions stolen from their homes, vehicles or places of work to visit Logic House on Central Street, St Helens, to see if they are among the items on show.

DC Jeff Huxley said people would be expected to bring proof of purchase or ownership or be able to describe identifying features to officers before anything would be handed over.

He said: “After months of painstaking police work, we have decided that the best way now to reach more people is to hold an open day.

“Anyone who has been a victim of acquisitive crime in recent years is welcome to come along and provide us with the details we’ll need to satisfy ourselves that the items are yours.

“Workmen may have lost a day’s work after their van was broken into. Families may have lost hundreds of treasured photos after their cameras or laptops were taken in a burglary.”

The event runs from midday to 7pm on February 13 and between 10am and 3pm the day after.